Kittens being tossed from cars on I-10 in New Orleans

James McAllister was driving behind two pickup trucks traveling side by side Saturday on Interstate 10 when he saw an arm extend from each of the trucks and simultaneously drop objects onto the pavement in eastern New Orleans.

Paul Rioux,The Times-PicayuneJuliana Ackil cradles an injured kitten that was hit by a car on Ames Boulevard in Marrero in May. The Humane Society of Louisiana says it has received a rash of reports of kittens being tossed on roadways from moving cars.

"All of a sudden, there were kittens all over the highway," he said. "You really couldn't help but run over them at that speed. It made me sick to my stomach."

McAllister said passengers in the pickups apparently dropped the kittens in bags or sacks near the Bullard Avenue exit.

"Looking down, there were two, three, four to the right of me. There were more to the left. They were all around me," said McAllister, a teacher who was driving home from Mississippi. "It was like a horror movie."

An animal lover who recently adopted two unwanted dogs, McAllister called 911 and gave the dispatcher a description and license plate number for each of the pickup trucks.

"I told myself that I was not going to just let this happen," he said.

But McAllister was dismayed when he called police the next day and was told his report had been classified as unfounded.

"I've been trying to get an explanation, but they still haven't called me back," he said Monday afternoon in Marrero at a news conference held by the Humane Society of Louisiana.

Shereese Harper, a New Orleans police spokeswoman, said McAllister's report was initially deemed unfounded because police could not immediately locate the pickup trucks.

"If you are dispatched to a call on the interstate, unless you're right there, that vehicle is going to be gone in a second," Harper said. "So it was initially classified as unfounded."

But she said police are conducting an investigation based on the license plate numbers McAllister provided.

"Because this gentleman was so gracious and smart enough to get the license plate numbers, we are able to do a follow-up investigation," Harper said.